Hey All,
So I’ve been a competitive swimmer for a while now, about 11 years now, but have never been too into technical racing suits or really considered them for that matter. However, I’m currently looking into purchasing one, considering I want to do more competitive Masters meets in the future.
Seeing the extend of my suit knowledge has been limited to briefs and recreational jammers, I really don’t know what I’m looking for. I’ve heard from other swimmers it boils down to how it “feels” on you in and out of the water, but what really makes a tech suit “feel” good/fast? Are their certain qualities I’m looking for in the fabric or construction of the suit?
At the end of the day I believe it all boils down to personal preference and how it fits on the swimmer’s body, but I’m just curious to hear people’s opinions on what attributes of the suit design I should look for when trying on different options?
Cheers,
Jacob
Even more important than which brand you end up buying is caring for the suit. Ppl use their racing suits way too much. In general, each suit has about 10 swims in it *if it's cared for properly* before degrading to the point where any advantage is minimal.
I noticed in underwater footage that Ledecky's suit the first 200 meters or so repelled water. At about 600+ meters, the suit had already degraded and was not repelling as much water! On the same swim!
Don't warm-up in them. You should go up to the racing block dry. As soon as you are done warming down, take the suit off, rinse with cold water and allow it to dry before using again. I see ppl put those things on at 7am and don't take it off until 4pm, and do the same thing the next day. And the next meet, and the following meet.
Basically, I recommend buying 2 tech suits to alternate swims, and one tech-lite racing suit for relays or off events that frankly you don't really care about. Once you've gone through a 2nd cycle, then the previous batch can be used for the off events or slow meets, maybe a time trial at workout. I love that option b/c it simulates race day as much as possible.
Even more important than which brand you end up buying is caring for the suit. Ppl use their racing suits way too much. In general, each suit has about 10 swims in it *if it's cared for properly* before degrading to the point where any advantage is minimal.
I noticed in underwater footage that Ledecky's suit the first 200 meters or so repelled water. At about 600+ meters, the suit had already degraded and was not repelling as much water! On the same swim!
Don't warm-up in them. You should go up to the racing block dry. As soon as you are done warming down, take the suit off, rinse with cold water and allow it to dry before using again. I see ppl put those things on at 7am and don't take it off until 4pm, and do the same thing the next day. And the next meet, and the following meet.
Basically, I recommend buying 2 tech suits to alternate swims, and one tech-lite racing suit for relays or off events that frankly you don't really care about. Once you've gone through a 2nd cycle, then the previous batch can be used for the off events or slow meets, maybe a time trial at workout. I love that option b/c it simulates race day as much as possible.
